Indra has begun preparations to shift final assembly of the 8x8 Dragón armored vehicles to its newly acquired El Tallerón facility in Gijón, Asturias. The move includes a €13 million payment to General Dynamics European Land Systems (GDELS), parent company of Santa Bárbara Sistemas, for employee training.
Currently, assembly of the Dragón vehicles is limited to a single line at Santa Bárbara’s Trubia plant. The program has faced delivery delays, and no units are yet in operational service.
The transition is part of Indra’s broader strategy following its recent acquisition of a majority stake in Tess Defence, the consortium responsible for the Dragón program. Tess Defence includes Indra, GDELS-Santa Bárbara Sistemas, Escribano Mechanical & Engineering, and Sapa.
As part of this restructuring, Indra purchased El Tallerón from Duro Felguera for €3.6 million. The facility will be retooled to accommodate military vehicle production, though technical assessments are still underway to determine the necessary modifications. Production is expected to begin in the coming months following investments in machinery. Indra also aims to retain the 156 employees who previously worked at the site.
The company has already made an initial €2.5 million payment to GDELS for training services, according to sources familiar with the deal. Indra’s CEO, José Vicente de los Mozos, stated that the plan to relocate production was anticipated as part of the Tess Defence acquisition.
In addition to final assembly, the agreement with GDELS covers lifecycle support and maintenance services for the Dragón vehicles, signaling Indra’s intent to establish long-term operational capacity at El Tallerón.
According to Indra Chairman Ángel Escribano, Tess Defence aims to deliver between 60 and 80 vehicles by the end of the year. As of August 4, only 11 units had been delivered to Spain’s Ministry of Defence, with none yet in active service. Another 22 vehicles are reportedly awaiting validation.
The Dragón program involves the production of 348 units at an estimated cost of €2 billion. Tess Defence is also leading the tracked support vehicle (Vehículo Apoyo Cadenas – VAC) project, intended to replace Spain’s aging TOA fleet. That program, too, is facing delays.
